Fire Bird
by MarvelRose02
Summary: When Phoenicia Romanov is taken away from the orphanage her and her sister lived, she is not ready for what her future holds. Hydra, a corrupt government organization, uses her for a new project. As the Winter Soldiers new partner and a seemingly loyal asset of Hydra, how will Phoenicia handle meeting the avengers? And the sister she hasn't seen in years? Bucky/oc/Steve
1. Chapter 1

_If lonely is a taste then it's all i've been tasting - Can you hold me by NF_

Chapter 1

"How is project Fire Bird coming along, Rumlow?" Alexander Pierce stood hands clasped behind his back as he watched through the two sided glass into the observation room. Agent Brock Rumlow smirked at his boss and watched alongside Pierce as a young girl was dragged into the room.

"The serum is ready sir and we believe we've found the perfect test subject" The girl in the room struggled hard against the soldiers that gripped her arms. Her small body bucked and twisted as she screamed. The kick she threw out caught one of the doctors in the room in his chest and he went stumbling back. Another soldier grabbed her leg and the three lifted her and placed her on the table, strapping her down. She looked to be around the age of nine with long beautiful blood red hair, porcelain skin covered in freckles and bright emerald green eyes. She continued to fight against her restraints and Pierce smiled.

"Yes she looks like a fighter. Good choice Rumlow, we'll begin the experiments immediately. The soldier needs a partner and Hydra needs a new fighter" Rumlow nodded and motioned for the soldiers in the room to alert the doctors to begin.

"Where's the asset from?" Pierce watched as the doctor walked forward and inserted the needle into the girl's arm. Her struggling died down as the serum entered her system, her screams grew louder and tears fell from her eyes.

"Russia, sir. She was considered for The Black widow project."

"And her name?" Rumlow glanced at the file in his hands.

"Phoenicia Roselia Romanov"

"Fight" Phoenix moved forward quicker then death and began to fight her newest opponent. She had just turned 13 and after 4 years with Hydra she had learned how to take down a man more than 5 times her size when ordered. The man fell fast, he was a soldier she had seen at the facility she was kept in many times. To her knowledge he had disobeyed a direct order which meant he became her next test. Though it truly didn't matter who it was, she would have to kill him anyway. She grabbed the gun from her thigh holster and shot him quickly between his eyes. He didn't even have the chance to scream. Phoenix glanced over at her 'boss' Alexander Pierce.

"Very good, asset." She nodded numbly, killing had always drained a lot from her. She could still remember her first hit. Phoenix's eyes moved across the room and met the eyes of her partner and trainer, The Winter Soldier. He stared back at her with something like approval glinting in his eyes. She was the only person who could see the emotions that flitted across his eyes ever so rarely. Phoenix could still remember the first time she had seen those eyes.

At 10 years old, she had been shaking and scared. The serum Hydra had put into her had worked after many hours of excruciating pain, she had awoken to a blindingly white room and Doctors hovering over her. As a terrified child who had been taken from orphanage her sister and her had been living, she did the only thing she could think of. She fought and screamed. At some point she had broken the straps on her wrists and leapt off the table. The soldiers had left the door along and so she went flying down the hall looking for any exist she could find. Her hospital dress kept her covered but she was freezing in the facility. Her small feet slapped against the ground as she ran faster then had ever run before, faster then she thought possible. After turning a corner, she ran smack into a group of soldiers. They attempted to grab her but she punched one in the face with all her might. She could remember hearing a sickening crack but she was too focused on kicking the other soldier away from her to notice. The second soldier went flying and she gasped. _What had they done to her?_ She hadn't had time to contemplate it as a siren blared throughout the compound. She took off again. After a few minutes she ended up finding the exit. She smashed the consol that locked the doors and threw them open.

Stepping out into the snow, she noticed something that stopped her heart.

She had absolutely _no_ clue where she was! Her orphanage had been in a small village while apparently the place she had been held in was in the middle of a snowy mountain. The fear crept up her spine and wrapped around her as she glanced around looking for any route she could take. When she decided on the tall trees which could provide shelter, she bolted. Cold seeped into her feet and bones but she continued running. She could hear shouting from behind her, apparently the soldiers had followed her. Risking a momentary glance, she could see a group of dark figures far behind her. Her hope that she would escape didn't last long however for the moment she turned around she ran into something hard. She scrambled back and glanced up.

Her green eyes met an icy pair of blue.

Standing in front of her was the most beautiful and terrifying man she had ever seen. He had hair darker then any night sky she had ever seen and a face that seemed almost chiseled out of stone. His muscles were large and defined and he was dressed in black clothes with guns and knives strapped in every possible place. She noticed that one of his arms was completely covered while the other was exposed, revealing it to be made of metal. Phoenix had never seen anyone with a part of them being metal and she was terrified. He stared hard at her, as if he was curious. His blue eyes were cold and a gorgeous blue.

"Please don't kill me" It was the first time she'd spoken since waking the men had taken her from her bed who knows how long before. Her voice was small and shaky, weaker then she wished it had been. He tilted his head to the side and Phoenix couldn't help but mentally compare him to a confused puppy.

"Asset! Grab her" A dark male voice sounded from behind and she could see the change in the man before her. He went from confused and curious to menacing and violent within a moment's time. Faster then she could track he grabbed her and then all she knew was black.


	2. Chapter 2

_It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you - Africa by Toto_

Chapter 2

"Wake up, Phoenicia" Phoenix jolted awake from her slumber to see the Winter Soldier standing above her bed. She had grown used to these sort of wake up calls, it meant she had training to do. She slipped out of bed, now at 16 years old her legs were longer and her body had filled out. The asset turned away to give her the chance to change into her sports bra and training leggings. Both were fire proof because they had discovered she had developed the power to control fire along with her super strength, speed, and hearing.

"It's Phoenix, Winter. You know that" The winter soldier, which she had fondly dubbed 'Winter' gave no reply as he turned around to meet her eyes. In her 7 years at Hydra, winter had only spoken to her directly a handful of times but she still considered him her best friend. Only friend really. He was the only one in all the different Hydra facilities they went to that never laid a hand on her besides training. She also could always count on him to have her back. After many missions together and many nights of endless torture that ended with him gently fixing her up, she had learned how to read the signs that there was a man beneath the armor of the winter soldier. A man who despite his cold exterior, deep down, had grown to care for her in some way or another.

Throwing on her regulation combat boots, Phoenix followed Winter out the door to her room or cell as she always saw it, and down to the training room. After waking up from the blow the Winter soldier had bestowed to her on their first meeting, Phoenix had been terrified. They immediately began testing her and torturing her when she didn't comply. And sometimes, just for the hell of it. After the first few months, they had Winter begin to run through basic hand to hand combat, then weapons training, and then Hydra's very own grueling exercises as they tried to teach her to control her new found powers and how to use them. The training rooms in all the facilities was the place she would practice her fire abilities, along with fighting Winter to build on her impressive strength. Now she could quite easily bench press a car and go head to head with Winter himself, and she even came out on top a few times.

This was not going to be one of those times.

As soon as they got into the ring, she knew something was bothering Winter. It was in his body language and his eyes. He was a lot more tense then usual and his eyes glinted like hard steel. He was pissed. Phoenix swallowed and rolled her shoulders back. It was gonna be a long training session.

She had been right.

Phoenix couldn't count how many times she got her ass handed to her but she knew it was a lot. Enough to make even the genetically modified human sore to her bones. When their training time was finished, instead of Winter leading her to where they would eat, he led her down a new series of halls into a what looked like a war room. Standing over a table of what looked like maps and lists of names, was Alexander Pierce. He was discussing something with Agent Rumlow. Winter immediately went to stand in the corner of the room behind Pierce which was the best advantage point in the room. From there, he stood silently, his eyes never leaving Phoenix's form, though she didn't take note of it as Pierce began to speak.

"We have a new mission for you. Fire Bird" She focused her attention on him and didn't see winter tensing as his eyes narrowed.

"Ready to comply, Sir" Pierce and Rumlow smirked. She had learned long ago that the only way to survive, was to be silent and follow orders. Didn't mean she had to like it. In fact, Phoenix hated it. In her 7 years, she had 23 confirmed deaths. She could remember every name and every face. Sure, most of them were terrible people. It didn't mean she had to be on their level and take their lives into her own hands. But with Hydra there was no denying to kill. Only order, and that order would usually come from pain.

"We have a list of targets we wish for you to take care of. You will be going alone and should have this mission compl-"

"I'm sorry sir, Alone?" Phoenix glanced at the Winter soldier who looked about ready to rip the room apart with his hands. "But the soldier and i have always done our missions together."

Pierce did not look happy at being interrupted and nodded to Rumlow who backhanded Phoenix. The force of the blow was not enough to knock her down but her head snapped to the side. Through the curtain of her hair, she could see the Winter soldier had taken a few steps in her direction, his icy blue eyes focused on Rumlow in a stare that made her shiver from the violence. Lifting her head back up she met Pierce's eyes once again.

"Yes, Asset, _Alone._ The Soldier is remaining here. You will be taking care of the targets and then returning. The mission is to be completed within two years and then you will come back and continue your training. Is that understood?" Phoenix tried to bottle up any emotion that threatened to crawl it's way up her throat at the thought of being out alone for two years. The longest she and Winter had been separated for before was 4 months. It had been a punishment for failing a mission. They had realized that a relationship had formed between the two and had decided to use it against them. Either they complied and completed missions, or they would be tortured in front of each other, and then separated. She nodded.

"Perfectly, Sir" Another smile from Pierce and a subtle clenching pair of fists from Winter.

"Soldier please escort Fire to her room and give an overview of the first few targets. Make sure she has all she needs." Winter jerked his head in what passed for a nod and then stalked out of the room as if the hounds of hell nipped at his heels. Phoenix nodded to Rumlow and Pierce before following.

The walk back to her room was silent. Winter barely looked at her, choosing instead to glare at the hall in front of him as if it had wronged him somehow. Her much shorter legs barely could keep up with his long strides. She was 5'2 and compared to his 6'0 stature, she was tiny. When they arrived at her room he walked in and sat on her bed staring out the small window above it. Phoenix wanted to snort, from this view he looked like an angsty teenager which was supposed to be her department. His long dark hair fell in front of his eyes and his pink lips were downturned in a frown. She sighed.

"So this is why you were so pissed of earlier" He met her eyes before looking away. Phoenix began moving around the room trying to get everything she would need. "It'll be okay you know" He didn't respond. She turned around and began organizing a pack full of supplies.

"I mean it's only-" She had turned around to find him standing right in front of her. "Wint-?" He grabbed her and pulled her close to him. She was shocked. Never in all her years here had he ever hugged her. He had held her to him on missions where they were in freezing temperatures and had grabbed her and shielded her from bullets, but never a hug of pure affection. It took her a moment before she responded. She dug her face into his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"I won't be able to protect you" His voice was quiet and soft, softer then she had ever heard.

"I know"

"If something goes wrong I won't be there" She dug her nails into his back.

"I know"

He pulled back from her and gripped her face between his larger hands. They were calloused from years of fighting and shooting guns. Both were covered in scars yet they were gentle on her face, as if he was holding glass. She smiled up at him and something flashed in his eyes.

"I'll be okay you know? You've been training me since I was 9. I'll do just fine" He smirked.

"I don't doubt it, little bird" He had taken to calling her little bird years ago and had only used it when they were alone. It was an affectionate nickname which he always remembered even after Hydra wiped him the few times since she'd arrived. He always remembered her. He leaned forward and she watched him curiously as he placed a kiss to her forehead, it was so light and quick that she questioned if it even happened when he pulled back and turned away, the winter soldier's cold mask firmly back in place.

"Get out paper. It's time to make your list of targets"


End file.
